You (Are) the Hero!
by Gronzen
Summary: His master was the strongest hero in the world, the man who killed gods in one punch. He was his disciple, so Angels shouldn't be a problem, right?
1. You (Are) the Hero!

**Disclaimer**

 **Neon Genesis Evangelion is owned by Hideaki Anno/Gainax**

 **One-Punch Man is owned by 'One'**

The boy looked around at the empty streets. No one was in sight, not a single person or even animal. Except the cicadas… cicadae? Cicader? The boy sighed.

"I'm think the heat is getting to me. Am I too early? Hmm… Well, maybe I can just wait in a store or something. I mean, it's not like I wouldn't notice purple hair." The boy noticed a girl down the street watching him. "Blue hair? Maybe she's related to Miss Katsuragi?"

A tremor caused him to look away, "Oh, an earthquake! _That_ must be it! Wait, shouldn't she be inside too?" He looked back to where the girl used to be standing. "…Maybe she just didn't get the message?"

An explosion rocked out behind him, and he coughed to clear out the resulting smoke from his lungs. He turned to see several gunships firing at a…

"…Kaiju?"

A car screeched onto the street and stopped a few feet from him. The woman he was supposed to meet opened the door with an urgent "Get in!" In seconds they sped off. Misato gave him a glance a few minutes later and spoke, "You don't seem too bothered by what you saw, Mr. Ikari."

"Just 'Shinji' is fine, Miss Katsuragi. And, well, stuff like that doesn't really bother me anymore."

She smiled, "Well then, just 'Misato' is fine, too." A comfortable silence held before Misato realized something. "Hold up, what do you mean stuff like this doesn't bother you anymore?"

Shinji pointed past her, "You see enough kaiju, and they become pretty boring."

Misato looked to where he was pointing before her eyes widened. She immediately tried to pull him down but only succeeded in planting her face into his lap. A massive shockwave caused the car to flip end over end before landing upside down. The doors opened and a red-faced Misato and Shinji stepped out.

"…Ahem. Right. Let's… just focus on getting to NERV for now. It's a bit of walk but I can-"

Shinji walked up to the car and proceeded to pick it up and flip it back onto its tires. He got back in and a shell-shocked Misato joined him a moment later. Miraculously the car still ran, and they resumed their drive.

"…You're, uh, pretty strong, aren't you?"

Shinji nodded, "The second strongest in the world."

"Who's the first?"

"My father."

Misato was shocked, "Commander Ikari-"

"Not him, my adoptive father, Saitama." Shinji frowned.

Misato winced, "Sorry. I'm guessing from the frown you and the Commander didn't have the best relationship?"

Shinji closed his eyes and yawned, "Hard for there to be a relationship when two people stay out of each other's lives for years. Wake me up when we get there, the run here was killer."

* * *

The jolt of the elevator snapped Shinji out of his rest. Misato glared at him while he stood up from the floor.

"You sleep like a rock, you know that?"

Shijin scratched his cheek, "Sorry... Anyways what's with the mecha? Is it for fighting that kaiju?"

" _That_ is an Evangelion, and it is for fighting the _Angel_ , not 'kaiju'." A blond woman in a lab coat walked towards them, "Is this the new pilot for Unit-01?"

"No."

Both women stared at Shinji, who looked fairly bored.

"I only made the trip out here to tell Rokubungi that. This place doesn't really have a mail or call center, or a website, so here I am."

"But-"

"And no offense, but the thing out there looks like the monster-of-the-week for a sentai show. The fact you _conveniently_ have a brightly colored robot to fight it doesn't help."

"It is not a-"

"It doesn't matter, Doctor Akagi. Prepare Rei for combat." Both women looked up to a large-windowed office. Gendo and an elderly man stared down at them. Shinji frowned and glared at Gendo.

"…Why are you wearing shades? Do you get migraines? Probably shouldn't have an office so high up if you do."

* * *

Gendo stared at his son. The boy had left with some bald stranger before he could be sent away and they both seemed to just disappear. It was only last year that he was found. Apparently, he had been living on the outskirts of Tokyo-3 in a neighborhood that had somehow been forgotten and none of the water, gas, or electricity had been shut off. The boy had been running to another neighborhood almost ten kilometers away to perform odd jobs for money. Eventually someone recognized him from a missing-child poster and alerted the police.

According to him, his 'sensei' had been training him ever since he left, and was schooled by another disciple over the years. Any questioning into why he never returned to society received the same answer: 'I had no reason to. I know how to take care of myself better than most adults and no one is waiting for me out there.' The police doubted it, but he aced whatever tests they gave him and a few rooftop farms were found around the area. Still, he agreed to be placed in a foster home until he was legally an adult.

All this went against his scenario, but Gendo would be damned if this stopped it. All that mattered was that Shinji fought the Angels. Whether it's through guile or force didn't matter, and as Shinji got into the elevator he had a feeling it would be the latter.

* * *

'That was weird.'

Gendo had just gone silent for a few minutes after Shinji spoke, not even reacting when a tremor rocked the building. Shinji did what he intended, so after thanking whoever was in the Evangelion for blocking some falling debris, he left.

'Maybe he got lost in thought like Genos does sometimes…'

The elevator reached the top and the door opened to reveal at least a dozen men in combat gear with batons.

"Huh? Do you guys work for NERV too? Are you like those security guys at the front?"

 **CRACK!**

One of the men had rushed him and slammed the baton into his head. The baton bent from the impact and the man was staggered. Shinji just pulled out his temporary pass.

"Oi, oi, I'm a guest here, see? You can ask Miss Katsuragi if you need to."

The rest of the men rushed Shinji and began beating on him. He just sighed and cocked an arm back…

* * *

"Excuse me."

Gendo glared at the screen in front of him. Shinji, who refused to pilot Unit-01, who was strong enough to knock out a dozen Section-Two men with blows that dented _kevlar_ , who seemed simpler than a piece of paper, had escaped.

And was now talking to the Angel.

It leaned down slightly to regard the boy.

"Could you please stop stomping through the city? You're causing a lot of damage. Why are you here, anyways?"

The Angel merely lifted its foot and stomped on the boy. Gendo frowned, this, this was not part of-

"Wow, you can see everything up here."

Shinj appeared on top of the Angel, looking down at it. He stomped and the upper half of the Angel _burst_. Shinji reappeared on the street a moment later.

"That was simple."

The body of the Angel formed a sphere around Shinji a second after he spoke and detonated. He walked out of the crater unharmed, now stark-naked.

"Good thing I brought spare- Crap, I left my bag with Misato!" Shinji disappeared from the screen.

Fuyutsuki looked towards Gendo, "Did any of your scenarios include _this?_ "

Gendo stared at the spot his son used to occupy.

"…No, they did not."

* * *

"Thanks again, Misato." Shinji walked out of the alley he had hidden in, now dressed in a white button-down shirt and black slacks.

"…No problem, Shinji." She stared at the boy for a moment, "…Shinji, how strong _are_ you, exactly?"

"Strong enough, I guess? I mean, my sensei took down bigger things than that kaiju, and I went through the same training he did…" Shinji shrugged.

"What sort of hell did they go through to get this strong!?"

"100 push-ups, 100 squats, 100 sit-ups, and a 10 kilometer run every day for about three years." Misato went wide-eyed at Shinji who just shrugged again, "You asked."

She laughed sheepishly, "That, uh, was supposed to be in my head… Wait, you started training when you were eleven!?"

"Ten, actually."

Misato sighed, "Well, you'll certainly be interesting to live with."

"…Pardon?"

* * *

"Here we are!" Misato presented her apartment to Shinji, who had to do a double-take to see if this was an illusion. Trash bags littered parts of the floor, empty beer cans and bottles sat everywhere. Misato frowned at Shinji's expression.

"Hey! NERV takes up a lot of time! I don't… have the… Shinji?"

He had closed his eyes, and when he opened them it was like a completely different person was in front of her. He disappeared from her sight, and the sound of clapping showed he had reappeared behind her. It was Misato's turn to do a double-take at what she saw. Her apartment was now spotless. Shinji looked around before nodding.

"There we go! Do you mind if I take a shower?"

"…Go ahead."

'If he can cook too he's going to be fighting off girls left and right.'

* * *

Shinji sighed as he took off his clothes. Living in the same city as his father was bound to end poorly. So was living with Misato. It wasn't that he didn't like her, but he had a feeling the incident in the car was an omen. Still, nothing he could do about it now. It would be best to just take that shower and-

* * *

Misato put down her beer when Pen-Pen came screeching into the room. He booked it into his fridge and Shinji ran into the room a moment later.

"Misato! Did a penguin kaiju just run in here!?"

Misato laughed, "That's just Pen-Pen! He's a warm-water penguin I adopted from my old job."

Shinji gave her a flat stare before putting his head in his hands and sighing, "Great. Now we have 'smart-as-a-human animal friend' to cross off the sentai list. Now we just need the suits and we'll be good." Shinji walked back into the shower as Misato laughed and took a sip of her beer. She spat it out once the image of naked Shinji caught up with her.

'…A fourteen-year-old should not have those kinds of muscles…'

* * *

Ritsuko sighed as she looked over the footage of Shinji's 'fight' with the Angel. She tried running the data through the Magi, but that ended in disaster. Magi-01 almost crashed trying to figure out how Shinji survived the Angel self-destructing, Magi-02 refused to help, and Magi-03 had almost crashed from seeing Shinji naked. Ritsuko rubbed her temples as the past hour or so caught up to her. There was one bothering her more than anything else about this situation: if Shinji was so strong, why didn't he try to get revenge on Gendo? He clearly hated the man if he used _**that**_ name and he killed an Angel like it was a bug, so why didn't he do anything?

She leaned back in her chair, and just rested her mind for a few minutes. She looked over at the spare plugsuits in her lab, and she chuckled.

'Maybe Shinji had the right idea. Make some helmets with useless mouths on them, see how Gendo likes the new 'N.E.R.V. Rider Force' uniforms…'

* * *

 **AN: I refuse to believe I'm the only one who thought Sachiel looked like a power rangers monster. Next chapter, Shinji meets Rei proper and goes to school! And that sounded more interesting in my head!**


	2. You're (My) Little Brother!

**Disclaimer**

 **Neon Genesis Evangelion is owned by Hideaki Anno/Gainax**

 **One-Punch Man is owned by 'One'**

* * *

"Misato, I'm off to school. Do you want me to-"

"Mmmm, five more minutes, honey…"

"…I'm… just gonna let you sleep…"

Shinji locked the door behind him and started walking to school. Three weeks had passed and no new Kaiju had attacked. His father was, unsurprisingly, avoiding him. All in all, his new life was fairly boring. Was this how Saitama feels? Shinji decided to put that out of his mind as he took his seat.

 **Click**

 **Click**

 **Click**

 _'_ _That noise… no, it can't be. I'm probably just homesick-'_

"Didja hear? We're supposed to be getting a new teacher today."

 **Click**

 **Click**

 **Click**

 _'_ _Huh, he finally got his degree? Good for him.'_

 **Slide**

"All rise!" The class representative said loudly. The other students began whispering to each other when they saw their new teacher. Short blonde hair, prosthetic hands (as far as the other students knew), and golden eyes with black sclera, he was truly an oddity. Only two students didn't react, and one lazily waved to the teacher.

"Hi Genos."

"Hello Shinji. There is something we must discuss after school, but for now you will refer to me as Mr. Kuseno or Sensei until school hours are over. Now, you may all take your seats." As everyone sat back down and as Genos began the lesson, Shinji felt himself frown.

 _'_ _Did I forget something at my old apartment? I can't imagine any other reason for Genos to come here…'_

* * *

Shinji watched as the clouds rolled by, waiting for whoever told him to head the roof. The message had just popped up on the small laptop he was using in class, and he had nothing better to do, really. He heard the door to the roof open, and he saw two other boys come up on the roof. The one with glasses looked nervous and the other was making his way towards Shinji.

"Oh, hi. Are you the one who invited me up here?"

The boy nodded, "Yep. And are you the one that fought that alien?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Just making sure I'm hitting the right person"

"Eh?"

 **WHAM!**

"…DAMMIT! What are you made of!?" The boy cradled his hand, knuckles quickly bruising.

Shinji blinked, "Are you alright?"

The boy growled and punched Shinji's face with his other hand. He pulled it back a moment later and began swearing. He kicked Shinji right between the legs, but met the same result. The boy with glasses looked at his friend before pointing at Shinji.

"Holy crap, he's a super soldier!"

"Hero."

"…Eh?"

Shinji adopted a serious look, "I'm a hero, just like my father."

"If you're a hero," the boy that hit Shinji growled as he stood up, "Why did you let my sister get hurt!?"

Shinji blinked twice, "Wait, Rei is your sister?"

"No you jackass!"

"…I'm confused. Didn't NERV have enough time to evacuate the city? The Kaiju wasn't exactly hard to miss…"

He looked away before speaking. "She… she wanted to see the fight…"

Shinji stared at him for a moment before frowning slightly, "So, _you're_ the one who put her in danger?"

The boy cocked his hand back for another punch-

"ENOUGH!"

They looked to Genos, who looked furious.

"Mr. Aida, take Mr. Suzuhara to the nurse."

"Y-yes, sensei!"

"And you _will_ be reporting for detention after school. Are we clear?"

"Yes, sensei!" He helped his friend up, and the duo quickly retreated from the roof…

* * *

Shinji stood at the top of a nearby hill. Not soon after the duo left, Rei had come to the roof to warn him that another Angel was approaching. After getting permission from Genos to leave early, he decided to wait for it to arrive. He saw it slowly approaching, and a half-hour later got ready to fight-

"What're _you_ doin' here!?" He turned around to see the duo from earlier walking up behind him.

" _I'm_ going to fight the kaiju. Why are _you_ here? Shouldn't you be in the shelter?"

Glasses scratched his cheek nervously, "Well, I wanted to get some film of the _hero_ defeating the alien menace."

A gust of wind, and the two found themselves under Shinji's arms on a different hill.

"Stay here." Shinji dropped the two and made his way back to his own hill. The Angel stopped where he stood, before rising up to its full height.

"…So, can you spea-"

Two glowing tentacles shot from the appendages on the Angel's sides, heading straight for him. They wrapped around him, and he felt the Angel try to lift him. He just sighed before wiggling his arms out of the Angels grasp and grabbing the tentacles. He pulled, and as the Angel shot towards him he reared his arm back. He punched, shattering the Angel's core and sending it flying into the next hill, the tentacles around Shinji going limp. He shook them off and appeared behind the two from before, who looked at him with shock.

"You two alright?" The two remained silent, and Shinji blinked, "What?"

A breeze passed and he looked down before facepalming.

"Not again." Shinji groaned, "Alright, I gotta get changed, see you tomorrow." He left, leaving the stunned duo to figure out what the _hell_ just happened…

* * *

"That can't be good."

Shinji, now clothed, was standing outside of Misato's apartment and could hear a shouting match occurring. He opened the door, and the voices revealed themselves to be Genos and Misato.

"-okay for him to kidnap Shinji!?"

Shinji sighed. He had a feeling this conversation was coming, but didn't expect it to happen so soon.

"It's not that simple, Misato." Shinji took a seat at the table, nodding to Genos who nodded back.

"But-"

"Misato." Shinji had a serious look on his face as he spoke, and Misato snapped her mouth closed, "Rokubungi abandoned me at the age of four, _after my mother died_. He wasn't exactly the best parent before then, either. When I was with Saitama, he actually treated me like a son, instead of like a byproduct."

"He still _kidnapped_ you, Shinji-"

"And Rokubungi tried to do the same." Misato only stared in shock, "It turns out he didn't like the fact I wasn't going to act like a dog on a leash, and he had security attack me. I'm guessing he _conveniently_ left that part out?"

Misato didn't reply, and he turned to Genos, "So, what did you need to talk to me about? Congrats on your degree, by the way."

"Thank you, Shinji. As for why I'm here, I came to make sure you were taken into a good family."

Shinji sighed loudly, "Genos, I'm fine! Seriously, you know I can take care of myself."

Genos smiled fondly, "You can't blame an older brother for looking out for his sibling."

Shinji just grumbled, and the two made small talk for a short while until Genos had to go…

* * *

"Unknown is leaving the target's house."

They drove a short distance behind the blonde, waiting for the perfect moment to grab him. After fifteen minutes he turned onto an abandoned street, and they sped around the corner…

…to see the blonde had vanished.

"What the hell? Did he know we were following him?"

"Damn it. The boss is gonna-"

 **CRASH!**

The blonde lands on top of the van's hood and crushes the engine. He grabs the driver through the window and throws him into a streetlight. He leaps out of their sight, and the men inside nervously draw their pistols. A moment later the van's rear doors are torn off, and the blonde man rushes them. Minutes later the four of them are bound and sitting in the street, glaring at the blonde.

"You are going to give me the information I require."

"Go to hell, you freak!"

The man raises his hand towards them, but then points it towards their van while still looking at them.

"Incinerate."

A jet of flame shoots from his hand, and their van explodes. There's a tense moment of silence before the blonde speaks again.

 **"** **You are going to give me the information I require."**

* * *

Loud, rapid knocking woke up Shinji and Misato. Shinji open the door to see Genos with a look of fury on his face.

"Shinji, we need to talk."

Shinji steps aside to let the cyborg in, "What happened?"

"N.E.R.V. was watching this apartment."

"What!?" Misato stumbles into the room, and Genos glares at her. Shinji just sighs.

"Why am I surprised? Are you alright?"

"Yes. I've also taken the liberty of writing a _very clear message_ to Commander Ikari."

"Thanks. Have a good night."

"Shinji, are you sure-"

" _Goodnight_ , Genos. I'll be fine."

Genos looked like he wanted to argue further, but simply nodded and left. Shinji yawned and walked back to his room.

"Seriously, what is his problem? Got to be laws or something against this sort of stuff…"

* * *

"…This doesn't seem like the place you would let your only pilot live."

Shinji stared at the decrepit apartment complex, and started his way up to Rei's apartment. After the incident with the 'snake' Angel (They knew _damn well_ what it looked like, but wouldn't admit it), Shinji had offered to help the clean-up crew move its body. But Misato cited something about 'not letting civilians near hazardous materials', and instead tasked him with delivering Rei her new ID card. According to her, it made more sense to send something that important with him instead of the mail, seeing as he could protect it better than some flimsy envelope. He immediately called her out, and she admitted that she forgot to deliver it, and asked him to use his super speed to bring it to her. He agreed, mostly because he'd been meaning to talk to the quiet girl and never really seemed to have a moment to till then.

For some reason, Misato had giggled when he said that.

He rang Rei's doorbell, then knocked on the door when it didn't make any sound. The door swung open, and Shinji frowned.

 _'_ _Does Rokubungi know Rei lives here? ...Probably wouldn't care, really. Maybe I can talk to Misato about getting... her…'_

Shinji's eyes practically popped out of his head when he saw the state of Rei's apartment. It was filthy, almost rivalling Misato's kitchen when they first met. He rapidly ran back to Misato's and grabbed as much cleaning supplies as he could, and got to work. In seconds the room was almost spotless, bathroom going untouched due to occupation. Shinji heard the shower stop, and he realized something.

 _'…_ _I'm in Rei's house… I'm in Rei's house without her permission… And she's…'_

He turned around, and saw red eyes staring at him passively. His eyes drifted down and his hands slapped over them.

"I am so sorry! Y-your door opened, and I saw this place needed cleaning, a-and-" He stops as he hears Rei walk past him, and the opening of a drawer. His face turns a new shade of red as she dresses, before the noise stops.

"…Why are you covering your eyes?"

"W-what do you mean, why!? Y-you were… you know, not dressed…" He mumbles the last part, and curses himself.

 _'_ _Damn it all, Sensei taught me better than this! I should've just waited for her to answer the door!'_

"…I am dressed now."

He turns around and peeks through one of his hands, then drops them once he sees her in a school uniform. He pulls out her ID card and nervously holds it out to her.

"Misato sent me to deliver your new ID…" He mumbles. She takes the card, tucking it in her pocket before staring at him. He scratches the back of his head nervously.

"I'll, uh, get going-"

"Why did you clean my apartment?"

He blinks, "It needed to be cleaned."

"It wasn't necessary for you to do so. I-"

"Rei, you could have gotten really sick from all the stuff that was in here. I mean, I literally peeled a layer of mold from under your bed."

Silence reigned, and she tilted her head slightly.

"Why do you care about my well-being?"

He frowned, "That's…just how I am, I guess." She doesn't say anything, and he continues, "Rei, does, does anyone make sure you're okay? Like, do they make sure you're eating well, or check to see if you're sick?"

"I am provided with adequate rations by N.E.R.V., and Doctor Akagi maintains my health."

"Does Gendo really let you live like this?"

"…Are you not Commander Ikari's son? Should you not have faith in his decisions?"

Shinji sighed again, "That's… kinda complicated. Rokubungi may have gotten my mother pregnant, but he wasn't really a 'father'."

"…I do not understand."

Shinji shrugged, "Well, my mother cared for me, always made sure I was happy, healthy. She taught me the sort of things you teach a kid. Gendo… I don't think he ever once hugged me, let alone had a conversation with me. When he smiled, it was like he was only doing it to make mom happy. Hell, when I went missing, he wasn't even the one to go to the police, my foster was. And, honestly? Considering everything that's happened since I've been here, I'm pretty sure he's just an asshole."

Rei's face turns angry, and she slaps him. A moment later she cradles her shaking hand, and Shinji reaches towards her.

"Are you alright!?"

She glares at him, and he flinches back.

"Leave."

He nods, shutting the door behind him as he does so. He sighs and frowns he makes his way back to Misato's.

 _'_ _Why did she get so mad when I insulted Gendo? Maybe Misato knows…'_

* * *

Shinji spooned out some curry to Genos, who gave a quick 'thank you'. Dr. Akagi nervously poked at hers as Misato downed her beer.

"Misato didn't make this batch, Dr. Akagi."

The blonde sighed in relief as Misato looked offended.

"Hey, I only messed up twice!"

"It was three times, and you almost burned the place down each time." Shinji deadpans, and Misato blushes as Ritsuko laughs. Seeing Genos glare at the woman, he interrupts the potential argument.

"Hey, Misato? Who takes care of Rei?"

She frowns, "What do you mean?"

"Well, when I went to her apartment, it was… well, remember what your apartment used to look like?" She grumbles, but nods, "Almost that bad. And she said she only had rations…"

"Hmm. I'm not entirely sure, but maybe I could talk to the Commander about it?"

Shinji had a feeling he knew how that would end, but nodded, "Thanks, Misato."

After that, Genos and Ritsuko make nerd talk as Shinji and Misato talk about school. After a few minutes Misato seems to remember something.

"Ah, Shinji? Could you do me a favor?"

He nods.

"We need you to not fight the next Angel."

"…Is this one of those 'we have to justify spending our budget on a giant robot' things?"

She laughs, "No, no," then pauses, "Well, kind of. We need to make sure the Eva can handle the Angels if we can't get you."

"Makes sense. I'll just step in if things get bad."

"Thanks, Shinji. Besides, it's not like an Angel's gonna pop up right this second! We'll have plenty of time to get it ready!"

A massive diamond shape floated through the air, its eventual destination Tokyo-3…

Dinner ended, and Shinji was outside enjoying the quiet with Genos.

"…Hey, Genos?"

"Yes, Shinji?"

"Can you dig up any information about what Gendo's been doing?"

"I've been doing so since I got here."

"Thanks Genos. I have a feeling Gendo isn't going to stop unless we make him…"


	3. I (Don't) Matter

**Disclaimer**

 **Neon Genesis Evangelion is owned by Hideaki Anno/Gainax**

 **One-Punch Man is owned by 'One'**

* * *

Shinji made his way to school, watching the clouds roll by. He was debating whether or not to try and speak with Rei today. He knew she had a right to hate him, but he couldn't help but worry about her. Gendo didn't seem the sort of person who inspired loyalty. Fear, definitely, but not loyalty. He couldn't understand why she would seem so… _insulted_ when he called Gendo an asshole.

Shinji sighed, "Things were simpler with Sensei, and Genos, and-"

He stopped, a look of horror crossing his face, "Sensei and big sis are alone together." He shook his head and kept walking, "No, no, it'll be fine. Her temper's gotten better, and Sensei knows not to…" He trailed off and looked back, "…I should probably ask Genos to contact them."

School went on as normal, right until lunch. Shinji approached Rei, but she quickly walked off before he could say anything.

"Havin' lady problems?"

He blinked, and turned around to see two familiar faces. The boy in the track suit was smiling sheepishly, and nodded his head towards the door.

"Wanna have lunch with us?"

"…Okay."

* * *

"I'm sorry." Tracksuit looked away from Shinji, the three of them standing on the roof of the school.

Shinji blinked, "For what?"

"Whaddaya mean, 'for what'? For hitting ya, for, for…" Tracksuit sighed, "For blaming you for my sister getting hurt. You were right… I, _I'm_ the one that got her hurt."

"Did you apologize to her?"

He blinked, "What?"

Shinji shrugged, "I'm not the one you got hurt. Your sister is the one you should be apologizing to."

He looked at Shinji before making a noise, and then bursting out with laughter. His fit lasted a few seconds before he calmed down.

"You're alright, Ikari. And thanks." He held out his hand, "Let's start over. Name's Toji. Toji Suzuhara."

Shinji smiled and shook his hand, "Shinji Ikari."

"And I'm Kensuke Aida!" The boy with glasses suddenly butt in, "So what was it!? Aliens, radiation, what!?"

Shinji stared in confusion, "What?"

"Your powers, man! How did you get them!?"

"I don't have any powers, I just trained." Shinji said simply, and Kensuke's jaw dropped. He stared at Shinji for a while before shouting.

"What!? There's no way you could get super powers by just training!"

Shinji frowned, "I told you, I don't have any powers."

"We saw you toss that alien like a ragdoll and you teleported us to another mountain!"

"I ran to the other mountain, actually." Kensuke opened his mouth, but Shinji held up a hand, "Look, that fact of the matter is, I got my powers by training, nothing else. Now can we please talk about something else?"

Toji smiled, "Alright, let's talk about you and Ayanami giving you the cold shoulder." To his shock Shinji nodded.

"I was hoping you could tell me how to get her to talk to me. I know she's angry at me, but I _need_ to talk to her."

Toji waved his hands, "Whoa, whoa, whoa, back up! You got _Ayanami_ mad?"

Shinji scratched his cheek, "Well, I was asked by Misato to give Rei her new ID card."

"Hold on, who's Misato?" Toji asked.

"Oh, she's the woman I'm living with." Shinji blinked as their jaws dropped.

"WHAT!?" They said in unison.

"She's my foster mom. Though, I'm starting to think Rokubungi had a hand in that."

Toji sighed, "Man, you really gotta watch how you say stuff." He blinked, "Wait, is that what you said to Ayanami?"

"No, that has nothing to do with it. See, Misato asked me to deliver her ID to her. I got to her apartment, and, um," he blushed, "some stuff happened, and we wound up talking about my father. She got upset when I called him an asshole." He frowned, "Maybe Rokubungi adopted her or something?"

"...Shinji, you don't think that he's…" Toji winced, and he didn't finish the sentence.

"…No, he's a scumbag, but I don't think he'd go that far." He put his hand to his chin, "Maybe I can ask Misato to-"

The bell rang, and the three made their way back down, each of them frowning deeply.

* * *

Shinji looked around, "Where is… ah!"

He ran towards Rei, and walked up beside her, "Rei? Could we-"

The girl only gave him a quick glance before speeding up her walk. Shinji, however still kept up with her.

"I know you're still upset about yesterday, but I need to know why."

"I am not allowed to discuss NERV matters with civilians." Her voice had a hint of fire in it.

"I'm not asking about NERV, I'm asking about _you_. Look, I don't know what happened between you and Gendo while I was gone, but I just want to make sure that you're okay."

"My personal wellbeing does not matter-"

"Of course it matters! _You_ matter, Rei!" She didn't stop, but she did slow down, "…Wait, did someone tell you that you didn't matter?" She remained silent, and Shinji felt something in his chest, "…Alright. I won't pry anymore. Just, know that you can talk to me, alright?" She didn't say anything, but she did look at him this time. She just stared at him, until he finally started walking away.

Gendo had better thank God that he was the one dealing with him, and not another member of his family.

* * *

Rei went through the required procedures of the activation test, and tried to clear her mind. It was imperative that she focus, but other thoughts began to stray into focus.

" _Why do you care about my well-being?"_

 _He frowned, "That's… just how I am, I guess."_

Shinji Ikari knew nothing about her.

" _Of course it matters!_ _ **You**_ _matter, Rei!"_

She could easily be replaced as the pilot for the Evangelion.

" _Commander, we can't let Rei live in these conditions. As our only pilot, her health and happiness should be top priority." Major Katsuragi looked to her with a smile._

Her happiness was not a factor in her ability to pilot.

…So why did they care?

* * *

Ritsuko sighed as she stopped the test.

Misato raised an eyebrow, "What went wrong this time?"

"She isn't focused enough," She pressed a button on the console, "Rei, is something wrong?"

"…No, Doctor Akagi. I am ready to perform the test again."

She sighed, "Alright."

They set up the test again, and after a few tense moments Rei succeeded.

Misato let out a breath, "Phew. At least we got it fixed before an Angel attacked."

Alarms started to blare, and Misato sighed as the phone rang.

* * *

 **BRING!**

"Hello?"

"…"

"I don't think I could have _missed_ it, Misato."

"…"

"I'm already on my way to it."

"…"

"I'm not going to fight it, I'm just getting a closer look."

" **AH"**

"What the… No, I'm pretty sure that was the Angel."

"…"

"Misato, this one can actually make noise. Maybe-"

 **BWWEEET**

Shinji ran to the opposite mountain and glared and the blue diamond, "I am not ruining another pair of clothes, damn it!"

"…!"

"I'm fine, Misato. Did the beam hit anything important?"

"…, ..."

"…I've gone from hero to distraction. Alright, but if it ruins my clothes, all bets are off."

Shinji hung up, and put away his phone before looking towards the Angel.

"…I should really ask Kensuke what he did with that video from my other fight."

* * *

 **AN: SOON-ISH. I SAID SOON-ISH. Don't blame me for the delay, blame life. Anyways, this chapter was going to be longer, but I decided to split it into two. Also, would anyone want Mari in this story? I'm not a huge fan, personally, but I'm willing to consider it.**


	4. Interlude: I Will (Not) Give Up!

**Disclaimer**

 **Neon Genesis Evangelion is owned by Hideaki Anno/Gainax**

 **One-Punch Man is owned by 'One'**

* * *

He glared at the large rock, but it didn't falter. It still sat there, looking smug. Once again he put both hands against it and pushed, putting every last drop of strength he had into it. He would move this stupid rock if it was the last thing he did! He grit his teeth, strained his muscles, and slowly, ever so slowly, it moved inch by inch away from him. When his arms were fully outstretched, he was completely out of breath, but his smile was from ear to ear. He stepped back to see his handiwork…

 **Thud!**

"Ow!"

…and promptly fell on his butt.

He could see two long lines of dirt leading to a small mound, and his eyes widened.

...He didn't move the rock. The rock moved _him_.

He narrowed his eyes at the rock, even as everything started to blur and get wet. He sniffed, and he rubbed his eyes on his shirt sleeve.

"Shinji?"

He looked up to see his older brother looking down at him in concern.

"What's wrong?"

"It's this stupid rock!"

His brother frowned, and he glared at the rock, "I see." He raised his arm, and it started glowing, "Then I will eliminate-"

"No!" He grabbed his brother's leg.

"I thought-?"

"I have to do it, Genos!"

His brother blinked, confused, before he seemed to realize, "Wait, were you training?"

Shinji stared up at him before looking down. He couldn't tell Genos about what happened. He, he would laugh at him. He heard a sigh, and Genos crouched down to put a hand across his back.

"Shinji, you know Sensei doesn't want you training yet."

"I can do it!"

Genos gave him _that_ look, the 'I'm older, so I know better' look, but he just stood, "Come on Shinji, it's almost dinner."

* * *

Shinji's hands ached, and he breathed heavily as he lied on the ground. That stupid rock…

"Shinji!"

Genos appeared over him, looking worried.

"You're overheated, and you're pulse is through the roof!"

He tried to tell Genos about his training, but all he managed was a wheeze. Genos picked him up, and he knew something was wrong when he felt _cool_. A cool bath and lots of water later, Shinji was on the couch, a wet rag on his head and the fan pointed on him. The sick feeling in his stomach wasn't helped by the fact that Genos and his father were talking in the other room. He closed his eyes as the door opened, and he heard footsteps getting closer.

"…Shinji, I know you're awake."

He sighed and cracked his eyes open. His dad was sitting there, looking worried. Neither of them said anything, and after a minute or two his father hummed.

"You're not going to give up, are you?"

Shinji frowned, and he sat up slowly. When the dizziness passed he spoke, "I… I know I'm not a super-smart robot like Genos," He looked down, gripping his pants tighter, "a-and I know I'll probably never be as strong as you," He felt something in his chest, like… _something_ , and he looked his father right in the eyes, "but I won't give up. I won't stop until I can beat all the bad guys with one hand behind my back!"

His father stared at him for a moment before smiling, "Okay."

Shinji blinked, "Wait what?"

"In one year, if you can push that rock you hate, then I'll let you start training to be a hero."

Shinji would never admit it, but there was definitely a 'woohoo!' loud enough to wake the neighbors.

* * *

"Sensei, are you sure this is wise? I know you say you gained your powers by training, but Shinji is still-"

Saitama sighed as Genos gave him a worried look, "It'll be fine Genos. Shinji will quit before this goes too far." Seeing Genos' confused look he smiled, "I went through hell for my training. I'm sure Shinji will realize how tough the training is and give up," he snapped his fingers, "like that!"

* * *

Saitama stared a bit open-mouthed as Shinji stood in front of him, a huge smile stuck on his face. As it turns out, Shinji was a _lot_ more determined than he thought. The three of them were standing in front of a big rock, and without further ado, attempted to push it. You could see his muscles bulge, then strain. There was a long moment where it didn't seem like anything happened, but eventually Shinji stepped away with a proud smile on his face. Saitama went up to the rock, and to his surprise, it was indeed a few inches back.

"So…?" Shinji beamed up at him, and he smiled.

"Alright. Tomorrow we start your training."

Shinji jumped and pumped a fist into the air before heading inside. Saitama sighed as his smile dropped, and began tapping a finger on the rock.

"Well, Genos, it looks like… like…"

Saitama frowned and stopped tapping the rock. He put his hand on top of it and jiggled it before grabbing it with both hands and lifting. The rock was actually much, _much_ bigger than he thought. He stared up at it before looking towards the house.

"…Sensei?" Genos looked at him.

"…Come on, Genos." Saitama smiled and set the rock down, "Let's go have lunch."

* * *

 **AN** **: Hello, everybody. No real updates, but something at least.**


End file.
